I've been reading WP and I've found it interesting, educational, and entertaining. I can't stand Trump as an individual, but am not against most of what he has tried to do since being elected. He's doing what he said he would do. And I do think that he's been treated unfairly by the media. He brings a lot of his bad press upon himself though. If I had known him as a kid, I wouldn't have liked him at all. He would have probably been someone that was picked on. Not by me of course. I didn't vote for him or Hillary. I wrote in Newt Gingrich. As a guy in his late fifties, neither the left or right represents me. I have problems with the liberal moon bats, as well as the gun nuts and religous fanatics of the right. I do want smaller federal government. Let state government run their states. Federal government isn't he answer to the problem, they are the problem. I miss Ronald Reagan.
I think your story is a common one.
Cuts to the EPA, arts and even meals on wheels. I don't mean to be a dick, but if Trump was the answer - it must've been a stoopid question. I swore off Democrats and Republicans years ago. I was so disappointed that so few people (and the media) were so afraid to give a third party candidate (especially Gary Johnson) half a chance. Maybe one day.
Cuts to the EPA, arts and even meals on wheels. I don't mean to be a dick, but if Trump was the answer - it must've been a stoopid question. I swore off Democrats and Republicans years ago. I was so disappointed that so few people (and the media) were so afraid to give a third party candidate (especially Gary Johnson) half a chance. Maybe one day.
I put the arts in a different category than the EPA and Meals on Wheels. I have been to many a charity concert when I've turned to my wife and said: "This is really f**d up; I'm getting a tax deduction to watch ______ perform. It just doesn't seem right."
I hope Trump drives an irreparable wedge in the Republican party. And I hope that the liberal wing of the Democrat party breaks away from the corporate/moderate Democrat party wing. These big tent parties do not serve us the people well in this duopoly arrangement. If we had more political parties with seats in Congress with specialized or even unique positions I think we would end up with a government that both represents it's constituents better and hopefully would operate better as smaller alliances could form without fear of being labeled the enemy by others in the current big tent party to move forward legislation rather than 100% of the Democrats voting one way and 100% of the Republicans voting the other way as it too often is now.
Anyway,
"cuts to meals on wheels"
According to their 2015 annual report 84% of their national office funding comes from individual donations and just 3% comes from federal money.
On the local community office level 35% of that funding does come from Health and Human Services Department (slated for 18% cut in proposed White House budget) and they state "other federal sources" "may" include Community Development Block Grant. http://www.snopes.com/trump-meals-on-wheels/
It is the CDBG that is being eliminated in the White House budget, I found it interesting that Meals on Wheels could not qualify what percent of their funding specifically comes from the CDBG - if you read other media reports you'd think Meals on Wheels was specifically named in the White House budget, which it was not, and you would be led to believe that Meals on Wheels would have to close shop based on the White House budget, they would not.
I have some first hand experience with people and groups that serve disadvantaged kids and work with local schools for after school tutoring programs and also weekend backpack programs along with providing elderly with at home care and services. Federal programs are not the only way these things can get done. There are alot of generous volunteer nonprofit organizations that seek to help in areas of need and there are alot of generous donors who financially contribute to these organizations.
Cuts to the EPA, arts and even meals on wheels. I don't mean to be a dick, but if Trump was the answer - it must've been a stoopid question. I swore off Democrats and Republicans years ago. I was so disappointed that so few people (and the media) were so afraid to give a third party candidate (especially Gary Johnson) half a chance. Maybe one day.
I put the arts in a different category than the EPA and Meals on Wheels. I have been to many a charity concert when I've turned to my wife and said: "This is really f**d up; I'm getting a tax deduction to watch ______ perform. It just doesn't seem right."
I'm not an accountant, but something in the back of my memory tells me that the deduction is only supposed to be up to a certain point and not necessarily 100% if one receives a good or service in a charitable situation???? Then again...maybe my memory is spent :P.
Cuts to the EPA, arts and even meals on wheels. I don't mean to be a dick, but if Trump was the answer - it must've been a stoopid question. I swore off Democrats and Republicans years ago. I was so disappointed that so few people (and the media) were so afraid to give a third party candidate (especially Gary Johnson) half a chance. Maybe one day.
I put the arts in a different category than the EPA and Meals on Wheels. I have been to many a charity concert when I've turned to my wife and said: "This is really f**d up; I'm getting a tax deduction to watch ______ perform. It just doesn't seem right."
I'm not an accountant, but something in the back of my memory tells me that the deduction is only supposed to be up to a certain point and not necessarily 100% if one receives a good or service in a charitable situation???? Then again...maybe my memory is spent :P.
You are correct; but sometimes the ruling is generous. I think I paid something like $250 for the Hubert Sumlin memorial concert at the Apollo (Derek; Susan; Warren; EC; Keith Richard: James Cotton just to name a few and $200 was deductible. Not the only example like that
He's doing what he said he would do. And I do think that he's been treated unfairly by the media. He brings a lot of his bad press upon himself though.
Except he's not doing what he said he would do (mostly because he said dozens of things that weren't possible, or completely contradicted himself). He promised every one would get health care, which we all knew was impossible, but he's doing the opposite and making it harder for people to do so. He said he would "drain the swamp", and instead he filled it up and is arbitrarily rolling back regulations that actually keep our environment clean. He said he would create jobs, and outside of publicly shaming 2 companies into keeping a few hundred jobs (for now), he's making cuts that will eliminate even more jobs. All the while, he is piling up a security bill just so he can vacation in Florida every weekend and his kid can stay in NYC.
"Brings bad press upon himself"? What you say? You mean making sh1t up every single day? Not understanding how the judiciary operates? Generally acting like a 2 year-old with foreign heads of state? Creating an environment of persecution at our international airports, which has caused a drop in tourism to the U.S.
I'll give you that the press is quick to jump on every little crumb, but it is only because this man is completely unfit for public office and leaves an embarrassing nugget pretty much daily.
He's doing what he said he would do. And I do think that he's been treated unfairly by the media. He brings a lot of his bad press upon himself though.
Except he's not doing what he said he would do (mostly because he said dozens of things that weren't possible, or completely contradicted himself). He promised every one would get health care, which we all knew was impossible, but he's doing the opposite and making it harder for people to do so. He said he would "drain the swamp", and instead he filled it up and is arbitrarily rolling back regulations that actually keep our environment clean. He said he would create jobs, and outside of publicly shaming 2 companies into keeping a few hundred jobs (for now), he's making cuts that will eliminate even more jobs. All the while, he is piling up a security bill just so he can vacation in Florida every weekend and his kid can stay in NYC.
"Brings bad press upon himself"? What you say? You mean making sh1t up every single day? Not understanding how the judiciary operates? Generally acting like a 2 year-old with foreign heads of state? Creating an environment of persecution at our international airports, which has caused a drop in tourism to the U.S.
I'll give you that the press is quick to jump on every little crumb, but it is only because this man is completely unfit for public office and leaves an embarrassing nugget pretty much daily.
I agree with everything you mentioned. However, the press has only recently begun, in my opinion, to bring his outlandish and untrue claims to task. Except, of course, the news outlets that actually perpetuate his outright lies. It seems to me they've been relatively tame on him up until 2 weeks or so ago.
What little bit of the coverage I saw of him with the German Chancellor yesterday made it crystal clear what an embarrassment we have in the White House. As Bill Maher put it on his show last night, "she longs for the days when she got a creepy back rub from George W. Bush."
Now she has to hold a press conference with a lazy child and try not and talk over his head about anything actually substantive so as not to show just how ignorant he is about actual world affairs and the German/American partnership.
If Trump does not fix the problems in this country, what we will go thru will be worse than 1931, per one economist.
The DOW going down to 6,000!
We have 320 million people in the US, 100 million have no job and want one, 43 million have no insurance at all, unemployment is NOT at 7.2%, it is more like 25%.
People cry about the debt ceiling, but I think what does it matter now, just raise it, if it is 23 trillion dollars, so what, why can't it just keep going up, what is the difference between 23 trillion and 100 trillion or even more. We passed the point of no return so just crank up the printing press, put money into circulation and just keep lieing to the rest of the world.
That 100 million number is a lie that keeps getting repeated - that 100 million includes retirees (which is growing because of baby boomers) and kids under 16 that don't work..... not just unemployed.
What do you think the actual number is?
Well, the way they calculate the number hasn't changed at all, so unemployment is 4.7% or about 7.5 million people. It's really not that hard to look up....
http://www.tradingeconomics.com/united-states/unemployment-rate
https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf
Well, the way they calculate the number hasn't changed at all, so unemployment is 4.7% or about 7.5 million people. It's really not that hard to look up....
http://www.tradingeconomics.com/united-states/unemployment-rate
BLS calculates it different ways. Their is the "official" number, but they also calculate alternates. For example, BLS has a category for those underemployed or discouraged workers, this figure was seasonally adjusted 9.2% in February.
https://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t15.htm
Some have expressed concern about the labor participation rate, which was over 67% 20 years ago, but has been steadily falling to currently below 63%.
You might think a simple reason for that is because more people are retiring? Not according to this. Teenagers, young adults 20-24, men and women 25-54 all saw declines in labor participation. Men and women 55-up were the only categories that saw increases.
Part of the problem is the way they calculate it does not take into account those who are not working but are no longer countable because they exhausted their 26 weeks of benefits.
If you actually looked at the links, they gave you that answer....
The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) was essentially unchanged
at 1.8 million in February and accounted for 23.8 percent of the unemployed. Over the year, the number
of long-term unemployed was down by 358,000. (See table A-12.)
Count me as part of the 9.2% replaced by a younger worker that I trained when I turned 60. The best I can hope for is a similar job at 50% of my old pay rate
